Giancarlo Esposito is Mof Gideon in the Disney+ series THE MANDALORIAN.
The Mandalorian: “Chapter Seven: The Reckoning”
“The Reckoning” kicks off with a deal. Greef Karga contacts Mando via holographic post and offers a let-bygones-be-bygones compromise that sounds great for all involved: Mando returns to Nevarro with baby Yoda as bait in a trap to murder the Client, who has brought in more ex-stormtroopers and despotically “impeded the livelihood of the (Bounty Hunter) Guild.” After that, Mando can keep Baby Yoda and Karga will clear his name with the Guild.
Though he obviously dislikes the idea of exposing Baby Yoda to danger, Mando hedges his bets by returning to Sorgan to persuade Cara Dune to join the mission. She likes the idea of blasting an Imperial warlord, so off they go. Mando then returns to Arvala-7 to enlist the wise Ugnaught Kuiil, his Bluurgs and his reconstructed and reprogrammed butler/protector version of the bounty assassin robot IG-11. And Team Mandalorian is formed.
Carl Weathers is Greeg Carga, Gina Carano is Cara Dune, Pedro Pascal is the Mandalorian and Werner Herzog is the Client in THE MANDALORIAN, exclusively on Disney+
Of course, conflict abounds among the disparate and argumentative crew. Mando is wary of IG-11, while Dune and Kuill bristle at each others’ company. They return to the volcanic Nevarro to meet up with Karga and head into town, taking casualties after getting attacked by nasty pterodactyl/dragon beasts along the way. Having been healed by Baby Yoda, Karga foils a planned double-cross and a new plan is devised. Of course it all goes fabulously haywire with the introduction of the ex-Imperial mastermind Moff Gideon (Giancarlo Espositio of Breaking Bad fame), and leaves us with the series’ first cliffhanger.
“The Reckoning” hits the target by reuniting Mando and Dune. Throw in Kuill and IG-11 and all of a sudden Mando has the crew the previous six episodes seeded for him. We get some great glimpses into the crew characters’ backstory, from Dune’s “dropper” days to Kuill’s indentured Imperial servitude to witnessing IG-11’s evolution. And you know Mando and IG-11 are set to develop a highly-amusing love-hate relationship over time.
Troopers in THE MANDALORIAN, exclusively on Disney+
The Baby Yoda babysitter problem I mentioned in earlier reviews is solved by the inclusion of Kuill, IG-11 and his Bluurg bodyguard squad (though its currently uncertain if Kuill’s gonna last beyond “Chapter Seven”). Baby Yoda’s Force-choking of Dune during her armwrestling match with Mando is hilarious, and both his cuteness and Force-value to the mission team (healing) are on full display. Gina Carano has shaken off the stiffness we saw occasionally in her first appearance in “Chapter 4: Sanctuary” and has found the tough-but-warm core of her character.
Powered by the assembly of Mando’s crew and full of action, humor, peril, tragedy, neatly injected exposition and the arrival of a new, high-powered villain, “The Reckoning” is super-entertaining and stands out as the finest episode of The Mandalorian thus far. It’s incredibly satisfying to watch and feel the story and character pieces developed in the prior six installments be forged together inside one crucible and then loosed upon the galaxy. There are no big surprises in “The Reckoning.” We all knew this was coming. We were waiting for it. We were not disappointed.